Andalas

Andalas, the first Sumatran rhino (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) born in captivity in more than 112 years, is the living, breathing result of a ground-breaking research and breeding effort undertaken by American zoos, the Indonesian government, and the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary. Andalas, whose name is the ancient Indonesian word for the island of Sumatra, was born September 13, 2001, at the Cincinnati Zoo. This little male rhino weighed 70 pounds at birth, and immediately became a worldwide news sensation.

Andalas’ parents, Emi and Ipuh, were part of an international breeding program developed to increase the population of the Critically Endangered Sumatran rhino - now numbering no more than 200 individuals, primarily living on Indonesia’s Sumatra island. Andalas is the first in a long line of Sumatran rhinos that hopefully will be bred in captivity and eventually introduced back into the wild to help bolster wild rhino populations. Once he was fully-grown, the Global Management Propagation Board for Indonesian rhinos recommended that Andalas be moved to the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS), a 250-acre complex located within Way Kambas National Park in south Sumatra. Andalas now weighs over 1,600 pounds and has fully adapted to his life in the jungle. He loves making his own mud wallows to cool down, and has started foraging for plants and twigs himself, rather than always waiting for his keepers to feed him. Andalas has also grown into his role as the sanctuary’s primary breeding male, having reached sexual maturity sometime in early 2008. The keepers and vets began gradually introducing Andalas and female Ratu during appropriate times for breeding. On June 23rd, 2012, Andalas became a father to Andatu - the first Sumatran rhino born in an Asian facility in 124 years! Andalas bred with Ratu again in January of 2015. Ratu gave birth to a female calf, Delilah on May 12, 2016 – the second Sumatran calf born at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary.